Manufacturers of packaged food items will have to label their products properly so that consumers can read the text without difficulty, the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control (DFTQC) said.

The labels will have to meet the Codex Standards, the internationally accepted code in the food business, according to the DFTQC.

The department said that it was introducing the new provision as consumers were being cheated due to the small size and fine print on the labels of many food products. 

DFTQC Director General Sanjeev Kumar Karna said the new provision was being introduced to adopt internationally accepted practices in the food business. “It will help to ensure the quality of both imported and domestically produced food items,” he said.

According to the DFTQC, the new provision will come into effect once the Food Regulation 2016 is enforced. The DFTQC has almost finalised a draft of the regulation and it is currently gathering feedback from various stakeholders, Karna said.

The existing Food Regulation 1970 contains a provision on product labels, but it does not say anything about their size. The new provision says labels on packages of food items should be of reasonable size and clearly readable.

In addition, the label should contain the nutrition facts of the food product. The label should also include the licence number, specify whether the food product is vegetarian or non-vegetarian and contain expiry dates and batch numbers. Karna said the labels should also mention ways to preserve the packaged food.

Likewise, the label on packaged food should contain details of the types of preservatives used and the sugar level and state whether artificial sweeteners have been used.

According to the DFTQC, food producers should get prior approval from the department before using labels on packaged foods. It will issue its approval after checking whether food manufacturers have complied with its standards.

“The absence of regulation on packaging has encouraged the use of substandard packaging materials, posing a risk to the health of consumers,” Karna said. The new regulation will also specify types of packaging materials that must be used for liquid and solid food products, he added.